花鳥風月 kachō fūgetsu Beauties of Nature

花鳥風月, read kachō fūgetsu: flowers, birds, wind and moon.

The beautiful things of nature, and the pleasure of looking at them and making poems of them: the phrase carries both senses, and the second is the older. Four characters in two pairs, flowers and birds, the painter's subject, and wind and moon, the poet's; the pairs are Chinese, and Japan joined them into one phrase six hundred years ago, first in the hand of the man who made Noh, and every master of linked verse and haiku after him used it for the elegant world a poem is built from. The order is fixed, and the four-word literal is the standard English; the house title names the things, and the pleasure taken in them is the half this page puts back. Whether you hang it for the four things or for the pastime of enjoying them is yours.

This is a particularly beautiful expression as it is composed of four of nature's most beautiful creations which are 花 (read ka) meaning "flowers", 鳥 (read chō) meaning "birds", 風 (read fū) meaning "wind", and 月 (read getsu) meaning "moon".

This is a very popular phrase and this art makes an excellent gift especially for a Japanese Tea Ceremony enthusiast, Bonsai artist or Ikebana artist.

We want you to be as happy with the meaning as you are with Master Takase's art. To learn more, visit Philology of 花鳥風月.

Your scroll is brushed when you order it and completed within 1 to 3 business days. It ships by USPS Priority Mail from Master Takase's studio in Washington State, boxed and ready to hang, with a printed page giving the art's English, romaji and Japanese.

Sending it as a gift? Tell us when you order and we will include your message.

Shipping is calculated at checkout from your address; within the United States it is $13 to $22. We ship worldwide, and any import charges for your country are shown at checkout before you pay.

Every order is covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee. If your scroll arrives damaged, or we made an error, we replace it or refund you in full, including shipping. Refund policy

Master Japanese Calligrapher Eri Takase brushes your scroll by hand when you order it. Each scroll bears her red seal, 英利, and her signature.

The scrolls are 12 1/4" W × 43" H (31 × 109 cm) with real silk borders and Japanese paper that are layered so the scroll hangs straight and will not warp over time. The scrolls themselves are made by Sankō (株式会社三幸) in Gifu prefecture, which has been making high quality scrolls since 1947, and we have worked with Sankō for over two decades.

Eri Takase was born and raised in Osaka, Japan, and holds the rank of Shihan, the highest rank in Japanese calligraphy, from the Bokuteki-kai and the Bunka-shodo. About Master Takase